Ranger's Apprentice One-Shots
by Ranger Charlie
Summary: These are going to be one-shot stories about Will, Gilan, Halt and friends from any time in their lives. Rated T because I don't know what stories I will be writing.
1. Gilan the Mimic

**This story is set when Gilan is coming back from Arradia with the Herons. It is a bit long but too short for two chapters. If you like it, review. If you don't like it, review. I love any input that you give me.**

Gilan was on the Heron. Hal was at the helm. Stig was with him. The crew were lazing around. Gilan wanted something to do. He meandered over to Stefan.

"Stefan, there is something I have been wanting to ask you. Would you be able to teach me how to mimic people?"

Stefan grinned. "Sure, Gilan. I would love to. Come with me."

Stefan lead Gilan to the back of the ship. "Sit down and pay attention," said Stefan.

 **...Two Hours Later...**

Stefan got up and stretched. "I think you have the basics down. You are a natural. If you don't mind me asking, why did you want me to teach you?"

Gilan looked a little guilty. "Ummm...well... I might find it useful, seeing as I am a ranger." This is what Gilan said but his face said otherwise.

Stefan grinned. "That is what you say but your face tells me that you have other plans. Do I sense a fellow prankster?"

Gilan grinned back. "Yes. I was planning to prank my old mentor, Halt. This will not be the first time I have pranked him."

"Well, I wish you the best of luck." Said Stefan.

 **...Three Weeks Later...**

As Gilan was saying goodbye to the Heron Brotherband, Stefan walked up.

"Good Luck with your plan, Gilan. Are you sure you remember how to mimic?"

"Of course I remember," said Gilan and Stefan jumped. Gilan had spoken but it sounded like Hal!

"Good job." Said Stefan in an impressed voice. "You are a quick learner."

"I will put these skills to good use, don't worry."

Gilan rode off on Blaze.

 _"What do you think of my plan, Blaze?"_

 _"I think you are stupid trying to prank Halt."_

 _"Don't be a party pooper, Blaze! It will be fine!"_

Blaze tossed her head skeptically. _"Don't blame me if Halt kills you."_

Gilan gave up on reasoning with Blaze. He rode on.

 **...Two weeks later, at the ranger gathering...**

"Hi Halt!" Exclaimed Gilan, as he rode up to the cross roads. "Is Will here yet?"

"Take a look around, Gilan. Does it look like he is here?"

"Nope! But I thought it would be worth asking." Said Gilan cheerfully.

Halt rolled his eyes. Just then, the two rangers heard hoof beats. The looked up and saw Will riding toward them.

"Hi Halt! Hi Gilan!" Shouted Will.

"Hi Will," said the two rangers.

Will pulled up and the three rangers shook hands. Then they rode off toward the gathering ground.

 **...The Next Day...**  
"Where is Halt, Will?" Asked Gilan.

"He went off to practice archery in the woods."

"Why didn't he go to the shooting range?"

"He is avoiding Crowley. Crowley wants him to do some paperwork."

Gilan grinned. "Poor Halt. He really hates paperwork, doesn't he?"

"Why did you want him?" asked Will. "Is it something important?"

"Always with the two questions, Will!" smiled Gilan, "Anyway, I have had an idea for a prank to play on Halt. Do you want to help?"

"Not on your life!"Exclaimed Will. "That would be paramount to suicide! I think you are an idiot!"

"You sound like Blaze," grumbled Gilan. "You are no fun."

"I may be no fun, but I am alive and unshot!" replied Will.

Gilan said goodbye to Will. He grinned evilly to himself. Even though Will would not help him, he would still go on with his plan. He walked into the wood to find Halt. He blended into the background, hardly making a sound. After a while, he heard the familiar deep throated thrum of a longbow. He ghosted closer and peered through the trees. He saw Halt, loosing arrow after arrow at various trees in the glade. There was no more than three seconds between each shot.

Gilan climbed a tree, gulping at the height. He had never liked heights. He settled himself in a comfortable fork. He wondered what Halt's reaction would be.

He took a deep breath. "Halt," he called in Crowley's voice, "I can see you. I have paperwork for you to do."

What happened next surprised Gilan so much that he nearly fell out of the tree. Halt jumped! Stern, stoic Halt, jumped nearly a foot off the ground! Gilan had never scared Halt before! Halt was too brave to be scared. Gilan was so surprised that he burst out laughing! About one second later, he realised his mistake. Halt heard him and whipped around. He saw Gilan in the tree at once.

"GILAN!" Halt yelled at the top of his lungs. "BY GORLOG'S BEARD I WILL SHOOT YOU, SO HELP ME I WILL!"

Gilan had never come down a tree so fast in his life. He fairly flew down the trunk and fled through the woods. He had to find someplace safe to hide. He couldn't hear Halt behind him but that did not mean he was not chasing him. Halt was a ranger and even an angry ranger can move silently.

Gilan came to a rocky hill. He quickly found a small cave and squeezed inside. He breathed a sigh of relief. Just then he realised something. His camping gear was with Halt and Will's stuff. They were camping together as they usually did. If Halt was mad with him, he could not go back to the campsite unless he wanted Halt to shoot him. It would be a long, cold night.

 **...Back At The Campsite...**

Will was making coffee when a very angry Halt came up.

"What's up Halt?" Asked Will.

Halt growled,"That big idiot called Gilan just scared the living daylights out of me." He trailed off into unintelligible muttering, filled with words that made Will's eyebrows practically fly off his head.

"Idiot!" said Will "He said he was going to prank you. I did tell him not to but he didn't listen!"

"He will not be coming back to camp tonight." Said Halt, grinning evilly.

"Don't you think that is a bit mean?"

"Not at all. He needs to be taught a lesson."

 **...Late At Night...**

Gilan was hunched over in the cave, trying to keep warm. He was glad of his cloak but he would kill for a cup of coffee.

 **...The Next Morning...**

A very damp and miserable Gilan crept back into camp the next morning. Will was up but Halt was still in bed.

"Is Halt still mad at me?" Whispered Gilan to Will.

As Will opened his mouth to reply, a growl came from Halt's tent.

"Yes he is!"

Gilan yelped and shot off. He decided that today was a good day to spend with Crowley.

Halt came out of the tent. He surprised Will by grinning at him.

"Gilan should learn his lesson by this evening. I am enjoying getting him back."

Will rolled his eyes. "Poor, stupid Gilan."

 **...Five Minuets Later...**

Crowley was drinking a cup of coffee when someone walked up. It was Gilan and he was damp and miserable looking.

"Good heavens, Gilan! What on earth happened?"

"I pranked Halt and then he wouldn't let me come back to camp. I spent the night in the forest, without coffee, and Halt still won't let me back into the camp!"

Crowley burst out laughing. "Oh Gilan! What will we do with you! Come over and have a cup of coffee and dry off. I guess you want to stay out of Halt's way today?"

"Yes."

"Good! You can help me with paperwork then!"

Gilan groaned but he could not do anything else. Halt avoided the paperwork tent so he would be safe there.

 **...That Evening...**

Gilan crept back into camp that evening. Halt allowed him to come back only after he heard that Gilan had spent the day doing paperwork.

"I suppose you have learned your lesson. Hopefully you will remember not to prank me again, although I think that is never going to happen!" said Halt severely.

Gilan was very meek and apologized very well. After all, Halt was very scary when he was angry.

Gilan was still pleased with his prank though! The cold wet night and day of paperwork was worth it to see Halt jump!

 **I hope you enjoyed this. If you have any ideas of something you would like to see here, let me know.**


	2. Greybeard Halt

It was only a month before Will's 19th birthday. He was in the last year of his apprenticeship. Will knew that he would be setting out on his own in just over a year. He didn't think about that much. A year was still a long time.

In just two months Halt and Lady Pauline would be married. All the wedding preparations were going on. Everyone at the castle was very busy. It was going to be a huge wedding. Halt was spending a lot of time at the castle with Pauline, helping prepare the wedding. This meant that Will was responsible for much of the upkeep of Redmont Fief. Halt didn't like leaving Will to do all the work but he knew it was good practice for the fifth-year apprentice to have most of the responsibility in the fief but with someone there as backup if things went wrong.

Will was still practicing all his skills every spare moment that he had. He knew he had to pass his exam if he was to get his silver Oakleaf.

He was also practicing something new. The Mandola. He had decided that he wanted to learn a musical instrument. As it turns out, he was quite good at it. Halt was not pleased with this development. He was not musically inclined and was commonly heard to say when asked if Will was a good player or not; "I don't know if he is good or not. One cat screeching sounds the same as another cat screeching to me."

Will took Halts grumpy manner in his stride. He knew by now that Halt would be grumpy and he just had to ignore him. Will could already play 'Sunshine Lady', Annalie Dancing', 'Old Joe Smoke' and 'Cabin in the Trees'.

One day, Will was busy shooting at the targets that were situated around the cabin. Halt was sitting on the veranda reading through some reports. Suddenly, Will had a great idea. What if he made a parody on one of his songs? What would he do it about and which song? As he shot, he pondered this. Then it came to him! 'Old Joe Smoke' could become 'Greybeard Halt'!

As he thought of that, Will got momentarily distracted and his arrow flew wide of the target. Halt glanced up.

"Gorlog's beard, Will! What was that!?"

"Sorry Halt. I had a good idea and got distracted."

"Don't do it again. What was your idea? It had to be pretty good if it made you miss the target."

Will paused. "I can't tell you Halt. It is a secret."

Halt raised one eyebrow and went back to reading his reports. Will heaved and inward sigh of relief. Halt wasn't going to make him tell his idea. Will got the feeling that Halt wouldn't like his new song.

That evening while Halt was at the castle, Will got to work on his song. It was harder than he thought! He sat there for two hours before he got the first verse and Chorus done.

 _Greybeard Halt is a friend of mine  
He lives on Redmont's hill  
Greybeard Halt never took a bath  
And they say He never will!_

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt  
Fare thee well, I say  
Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt  
I'll see you on your way!_

Will grinned. It had been a good night's work.

Will worked on the song over the next two weeks. He had got the song all the way through.

 _Greybeard Halt is a friend of mine  
He lives on Redmont's hill  
Greybeard Halt never took a bath  
And they say He never will!_

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt  
Fare thee well, I say  
Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt  
I'll see you on your way!_

 _Greybeard Halt, he lost a bet_

 _He lost his winter coat_

 _When winter comes, Halt stays warm_

 _By sleeping 'mongst the goats._

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt_

 _Fare thee well, I say_

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt_

 _I'll see you on your way._

 _Greybeard Halt, he lives with goats_

 _That's what I've heard tell_

 _He hasn't changed his socks for years_

 _But the goats don't mind the smell!_

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt_

 _Fare thee well, I say_

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt_

 _I'll see you on your way_

 _Greybeard Halt is a fighting man_

 _I've heard common talk_

 _That Greybeard Halt, he cuts his hair_

 _With a carving knife and fork!_

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt_

 _Fare thee well, I say_

 _Fare thee well, Greybeard Halt_

 _I'll see you on your way_

Will was very proud with his song. He thought, " _Halt will not be back for a while yet. I can play it through one more time to make sure it is all correct._ "

He started playing and singing. As he did so, Halt walked up. He heard Will singing what he thought was Old Joe Smoke. Then he paused. Could he hear, Greybeard Halt? Yes that is what he heard!

Halt stopped to listen. He waited until Will had finished the whole song and then he opened the door. Halt had to suppress a laugh when he saw Will jump.

"Did I just hear a whole song about Greybeard Halt?" asked Halt.

Will looked very guilty. "Yeeesss..." he said hesitantly.

Halt's eyebrows drew together into a dark frown. "Tree! Now!" he barked at Will.

Will ran. He might be nearly nineteen but when Halt was angry, that was not the time to argue.

Poor Will had to spend the night in a cold, uncomfortable tree. Halt didn't let him down until the next morning. When he came down, Will apologised to Halt.

"Don't ever sing that song again." Halt growled.

"I won't," promised Will. But in the back of his mind, Will knew that what Halt didn't know, wouldn't hurt him! He would sing that song plenty of times in the future!


	3. A Swimming Day

It was a lovely warm day and Will was out in the garden practicing his knife throwing. Time after time he hit the centre of the target. He was getting ready to throw again when someone tapped him on the shoulder. He jumped, spun around with the knife poised to throw at any potential threat. All he saw was Gilan with his hands in the air.

"gods Gilan!" exclaimed Will, "If you startle me like that, you may not live to do it again! I nearly skewered you!"

Gilan grinned easily. "I know. It is still fun though."

Will shook his head exasperated, the asked, "What brings you here?"

"I am here because tomorrow is a very special day."

Will smiled a huge smile. "You remembered my birthday! I thought I would have to spend the day practicing because Halt can't be bothered with birthdays. You know what he said about my birthday this year?! He said that because I was turning 17, I probably didn't care about birthdays anymore! Can you imagine? I love birthdays! Especially mine!"

Gilan laughed and said, "Well, then you will like my surprise present then"

"What is it!" asked Will excitedly. Then his face fell and Gilan shook his head.

"Your birthday isn't till tomorrow. You have to wait."

"WHAT! I can't wait that long! I will die of...waiting!"

Gilan just smiled and went inside to say hi to Halt. Will stared after him with a forlorn expression on his face.

The next day came and with it, as soon as the sun rose, Will. He jumped out of bed and ran into the living room where Gilan was sleeping on the couch.

"GILAN!" he cried, "It is my birthday and now you have to tell me what my preset is!"

Gilan rolled upright sleepily. "Is it morning already?" he murmured drowsily.

"YES!" shouted Will. Gilan had to smile. Will was practically jumping up and down in his excitement.

"Will, you are 17 now and you should be more demure," said a gruff voice from the direction of Halt's room.  
"Sorry to wake you Halt," said Will, not at all contrite, "I am just so excited to know what Gilan's present is!"

"Well," said Gilan, "For your present, we are going..." He paused. Will just about burst and Gilan laughed. "We are going swimming."

Will jumped up in the air with a whoop. He danced around the room and the proceeded to thank Gilan enthusiastically. He was so excited because his rigorous training schedule did not allow time for swimming. He had only been once and he loved it.

They packed up lunch and headed out to the swimming hole. Gilan, Will and yes, even Halt. The walk down was a short one and they arrived within fifteen minutes. Will immediately put down his basket, stripped off his tunic and boots and raced into the waterhole. Gilan followed at a more sedate pace. Halt watched from the bank.

They spent the morning swimming, playing and messing around. Eventually Halt called them out for lunch. They clambered out and shook themselves dry. There was a delicious lunch of bread, jam, cold ham from the butchers and an assortment of delicious fruits.

When they had finished, Will asked Halt if he wanted to come and swim with them.

"No way!" said Halt "I don't like to swim."

Gilan whispered something to Will and Will grinned.

Halt scowled. "What are you two whispering about?"

"Only that you are scared of the water, Halt," said Gilan.

Halt's scowl deepened. "I am not!" he exclaimed.

"Prove it by coming in the water," said Will with a cheeky look on his face.

Halt growled and grumbled but agreed to come in the water. They all went back down to the water's edge. Will jumped straight in. Gilan hesitated but did the same. Halt stuck one foot in and promptly announced that it was too cold.

Gilan and Will swam up to the edge of the waterhole. The peered up at Halt and both said, "No it isn't!"

"Yes it is and there is no way I am ever going in that... HEY WHA..." His sentence was finished with a shout and then a splash as the two swimming rangers grabbed him by his ankles and dragged him into the water. He came up spluttering and fuming. He gave on look at the two young men in front of him and then launched himself at them. All three went under tangled together in a mock water battle.

They spent the rest of the day enjoying the water. Halt even enjoyed himself even though he would never admit it! If asked in later years which was his favourite birthday, Will would always reply, "My 17th birthday."

 **I hope you like this story. I always wanted to do a Halt going swimming story. I also made Will act that way because I know a few teenage boys and they don't grow up when they turn 17 or even 18. They are still crazy for a long time yet! Will is an extraordinary boy but he must be normal in some ways!**


End file.
